How to Cook Dried Chickpeas

There is no need to fear the humble dried chickpea! Dried pulses make for cheap and easy vegan yum yums, you just need to know how to prep them properly.

Dried chickpeas take some time to prepare so it's best to plan in advance if you are going to use them.

I've heard many complaints from people about the farty smell they give off when cooking, which also puts people off doing this. Don't worry - I've fixed this problem with this method and made them extra tasty too!

Ingredients

1 cup dried chickpeas

Water

1 stock cube or 1 dessertspoon of all purpose seasoning

Method

Place the dried chickpeas into a large glass bowl or jar. Glass is best because it allows you to easily see how much they have expanded, and whether you need extra water (or a bigger bowl...)

Add about 1 pint of cold water. The chick peas will soak a lot up and expand to almost double their size - hence why I always say to use a large bowl or jug. In the video, I use a 1 litre Pyrex jug.

Loosely cover and leave to soak for 8 hours or overnight.

Strain and place in a small slow cooker. Add enough hot water frm the kettle to cover, add your stock, stir and place the lid on. Cook on HIGH for 2 hours or until tender to your liking.

I do recommend using a slow cooker for this because it means you can go off any do other things without worrying about them boiling over or boiling dry and burning. 

If you dn't have one, you can use a saucepan on the hob. Add plenty of water, add your stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1 hour until tender.

At the end of cooking, it's always a good ides to taste one to check it's reached the consistency you want before draining.

Using stock not only adds flavour to your chick peas, but it also makes them smell better when cooking - no more farty smells and complaints from family or house mates!

Drain the chickpeas and discard the liquid. 

Your chickpeas are ready to use immediately for hot dishes, or allow them to cool for cold dishes. You don't want hot houmous (well probably...)

They taste prettty good on their own, so you can sprinkle them on top of salads and other dishes to add protein and to fill you up.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for a couple of months.

Enjoy!